KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) – When a Knoxville woman’s dog was accidentally let out by a yard maintenance crew she feared for the worst. A Knoxville Police Officer found the dog, was able to track down the dog’s owner and even took the dog home with her until he could be picked up by his owner.

In a letter to the Knoxville Police Department, the dog’s owners said Officer Anita Watson saw “Oliver,” after he got lost on Beaver Creek Road. Watson stopped her car and rescued the dog.

“She was a guardian angel definitely sent to watch over my little guy, and I cannot begin to express enough gratitude for her compassion and kindness toward him and me,” the dog’s owner wrote. “Her actions were selfless, and far above and beyond the call of duty!”

Not only did Watson rescue Oliver, she took him to a veterinarian to have him scanned for a micro-chip and arranged to have his owner contacted. She kept the little dog in her office until the end of the day and even took him home with her until the dog’s owner could arrange to pick up Oliver after work.

“Saying ‘thank you’ will never seem like enough. She even sent me text messages and pictures of him to help calm me down and assure me he was okay. She is a true asset to the police force and this community. Thank you Officer Watson!” the woman wrote to Knoxville police.

The Knoxville Police Department posted the letter to their Facebook page and immediately received hundreds of comments from users commending Officer Watson on her selfless act.

“Thank you Officer Anita Watson. For having compassion and common sense when our babies get lost. You are a role model for others to see,” wrote Karen Huskey.

Christine Weber Pelleke writes, “Thank you for sharing this and a huge ‘hat’s off’ to Officer Watson! She exemplifies the best of KPD and her compassion for this little dog and his owner deserves this recognition.”